The Panama Canal
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Panama Canal Facts for kids: Fast Fact Sheet
Fast, fun facts and Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ's)
about the Panama
Canal.
What is the Panama Canal? The Panama
Canal is about 80km (50 miles) long waterway
that links the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans
across the Isthmus of Panama, that connects
Central America and South America.
Why is the Panama Canal important?
The Panama Canal is important because the
canal made the trip between the east
and
west coasts of North America about 9,200
miles (14,800 kilometers) shorter. Before
the canal was built ships had to go all the
way around South America.
When was the Panama Canal built? The
first attempt to build the Canal was made by
the French, but the attempt ended in failure
in 1889. The US bought out the French for
$40 million and built the Panama Canal in
ten years starting in 1904 and completed in
1914.
Panama
Canal
Facts for kids:
How does the Panama Canal work?
How does the Panama
Canal work? The land is slightly above the mean sea level, which
creates the need to lift the vessel. To facilitate the lifting and
dropping of a ship a series of locks and lock gates are provided.
The passage from the Atlantic Ocean begins as the vessel via
the port of Cristobal and enters the canal where it is boarded by a
pilot.
The
canal has three sets of locks, built in pairs, which
raise and lower ships from one level to another.
The Gatun Locks are like giant
steps to concrete chambers that lift ships from the sea
to Gatun Lake.
Small electric locomotives, called
mulas, run on rails along both sides of the locks
and towing cables are tied to the ship.
The electric mulas help to
stabilize, position and guide the ship in the locks. The
mulas pull the ship, into the first chamber and Massive
steel gates close behind the ship.
Valves are opened to allow water
from Gatun Lake to flow into the lock and the rising
water slowly raises the vessel in the first chamber
When the water level
is the same in the first and second chambers, the steel
gates towards the front of the ship swing outward and
the locomotives help to pull the vessel into the second
chamber.
The whole process is
repeated until the third chamber raises the ship to the
level of Gatun Lake. When the vessel reaches Gatun Lake,
the towing cables are released and the ship continues
for 23 miles across the lake to the Culebra Cut
(formerly known as the Gaillard Cut)
The ship moves on to
the Pedro Miguel locks, where it has one step, lowering
the ship down.
The vessel then
travels across the Miraflores Lake, and enters the
Miraflores locks which lowers the ship by two steps,
thus reaching the Pacific Ocean.
The picture shows
the Gatun Locks during their construction in 1913.
The average time spent in crossing
from the Atlantic to the Pacific is approx. 8 - 10
hours.
Panama
Canal
Facts for kids
The following fact
sheet contains interesting facts and information on Panama Canal
for kids.
Facts about
the Panama Canal for kids
Panama Canal Fact 1:
The electric locomotives, known as
mulas (meaning mules which were traditionally used to
cross the Isthmus of Panama)
Panama Canal Fact
2: The first European to reach the
Pacific and envision such a waterway was Vasco Nunez de
Balboa (c. 1475 – 1519) as he crossed the Isthmus of
Panama from the Atlantic to the Pacific
Panama Canal Fact 3:
The Canal stretches from Limon Bay on the
Atlantic Ocean in a northwest to southeast direction to the Bay of
Panama on the Pacific Ocean as shown on the map. The construction
involved 3 major engineering projects. The Gaillard Cut had to be
excavated. A dam across the Chagres River had to be built to create
Gatun Lakefrom the waters of the Chagres River. The locks (water
filled chambers) had to be constructed.
Panama Canal Fact 4:
U.S. President Woodrow Wilson officially opened
the Panama Canal in 1920
Panama Canal Fact 5:
The two ports at each end of the
waterway are Cristobal (on the Caribbean sea) and Balboa (on the
Pacific Ocean).
Panama Canal Fact 6:
How long is the
Panama Canal? It is 50 miles long from deep water in the
Atlantic to deep water in the Pacific.
Panama Canal Fact 7:
How wide is the
Panama Canal? It is about 200 feet (70 meters) in width.
The depth (not including Gatun lake), is about 65 feet
(20 meters)
Panama Canal Fact 8:
Each lock chamber is
110 feet wide and 1,000 feet long. Each door of the
locks weights 750 tons.
Panama Canal Fact
9: The Gatun dam is
nearly a half mile wide at the base, sloping to a 100
feet width at the crest (105 feet above sea level) or 20
feet above the normal level for the Lake.
Panama Canal Fact
10: The Gaillard Cut is 8
miles long and was carved through rock and shale
Panama Canal Fact
11: A toll must be paid to cross the
waterway. This toll is based on the ship's cargo space.
If it is a military ship the toll is based on the weight
of the vessel.
Panama Canal Fact 12:
The advertising slogan is "The
Land Divided, the World United."
Continued...
Facts about
the Panama Canal for kids
Panama Canal Facts
The first ship to make the first
complete trip through the waterway was the Panama
Railroad Company's S.S. Ancon sailing from the Atlantic
Ocean to the Pacific Ocean.
Most of its
traffic moves between the east coast of the United
States and the Far East, while movements between Europe
and the west coast of the United States and Canada
provide the second major trade route at the waterway.
The Unites States
tops the usage of Panama Canal, followed by China,
Japan, Chile and North Korea.
Ships traveling
between New York and San Francisco save 7,872 miles by
using the Panama Canal instead of going around Cape
Horn.
Since the canal
was first completed in 1914, the annual ship traffic has
increased from 1,000 to over 18,000 per year.
The Panama Canal Ocean Routes
Facts
about the Panama Canal for kids
The following fact
sheet continues with facts about Panama Canal for kids.
Facts about
Panama Canal for kids
Panama Canal Fact 13:
The names of the engineers who supervised the
work were John F. Stevens (1905–1907) and Lieutenant Colonel George
W. Goethels (1907–1914)
Panama Canal Fact 14:
The Norwegian Pearl cruise ship paid
$375,000 to use the canal in 2010. Cruise liners pay
$120 per berth
Panama Canal Fact 15:
The smallest toll of $0.36 was paid
in 1928 by Richard Halliburton to swim the canal as his
weight was only 150 pounds.
Panama Canal Fact 16:
The water that accumulates in the
man-made lakes is produced from huge amounts of
rainfall.
Panama Canal Fact 17:
The 751 ft. San Juan Prospector was
the longest ship to transit the waterway
Panama Canal Fact 18:
The canal generates fully one-third
of Panama’s entire economy.
Panama Canal Fact 19:
At the time of it's construction,
Gatun Lake was the largest artificial lake in the world.
Panama Canal Fact
20: There are no pumps on the canals.
Valves allow water to pass from the higher elevations to
the lower ones by power of gravity.
Panama Canal Fact
21: Construction of the P.C. required 61
million lb. of dynamite.
Panama Canal Fact
22: More than four and half million cubic
yards of concrete went in to the construction of the
locks and dams.
Panama Canal Fact
23: The locks of Panama Canal are built
in pairs allowing two ships to transit the waterway
simultaneously, either in the same or different
directions.
Panama Canal Fact
24: Since the Canal was
first opened on August 15, 1914, the waterway has
provided a transit service to nearly one million vessels
Panama Canal Fact
25: The Panama Canal has listed 11 marine
safety measures in the form of codes which are in
operation since the 2009.
Panama Canal Fact
26: The U.S. formally handed over control
of the P.C. on December 31, 1999
Panama Canal Fact
27: Cargo through the Panama Canal is
estimated to grow 3% per year for the next
20 years.
Panama Canal Fact
28: Because of its unique 'S shape',
Panama is the only place in the world you can see the
sun rise from the Pacific and set in the Atlantic. You
can swim in the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean in
the same day.
Panama Canal Fact
29: It has been closed only twice in its
history - the first time was in 1915 due to a landslide
and second time was on 20th December 1989, when the USA
invaded Panama.
Panama Canal Fact
30: Panamanians approved a plan to expand
the waterway in 2006 which is likely double the canal's
capacity
Facts about
Panama Canal for kids
Panama Canal for kids - President Woodrow Wilson Video
The article on the
Panama Canal provides detailed facts and a summary of one of the important events during his presidential term in office. The following
Woodrow Wilson video will
give you additional important facts and dates about the political events experienced by the 28th American President whose presidency spanned from March 4, 1913 to March 4, 1921.
Panama Canal
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Interesting Facts about Panama Canal for kids and schools
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Key events
and the Panama Canal for kids
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The construction of the Panama Canal, a major
event in US history
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Woodrow Wilson Presidency from March 4, 1913 to March 4, 1921
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Fast, fun facts about the Panama Canal
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Foreign & Domestic
policies of President Woodrow Wilson
● Woodrow Wilson Presidency and
the Panama Canal for schools,
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